


The Retaliation

by Jacqueline_64



Series: ROLLER COASTER [5]
Category: Starsky & Hutch
Genre: Chaos, Episode Related, Episode: s04e22 Sweet Revenge, Friendship, Gen, Hope, Injury, Missing Scenes, Not Beta Read, Shock, Trauma, Uncertainty, hopelessness, life threatening
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-05-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:14:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,753
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24455017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jacqueline_64/pseuds/Jacqueline_64
Summary: 1. Although not a part of my post Sweet Revenge series or Gunther Sessions series, I do use those series as point of reference for this story, by which I mean that any literary liberties (such as the explanation why Starsky is 32 in 1979 – see notes on The Journey; the length of the surgery on Starsky, the length of his coma – see The Post Gunther Sessions); the vow Hutch had made to his partner (in case of life threatening injuries – see Welcome Home) are the same as in the stories in those 2 series. I got the idea for this story from watching Sweet Revenge in detail recently, focusing on Dobey and Huggy.2. The medical equipment to which Starsky was hooked up in Sweet Revenge in the first scene after the shooting was laughable. Many fans with a medical background have mentioned this through the decades. So, for all my SR related stories and series, I’d like all readers to imagine a far more realistic set-up of (life saving/sustaining) equipment and machines that Starsky is hooked up to, like a ventilator, more IV’s and monitors. Also, imagine a far more realistic appearance of the area of his body that was injured: tubes, drains, bandages, tapes, incissions/stitches all that was missing from SR’s hospital scenes.3. I always thought the nameless doctor who treated Starsky on Sweet Revenge came across as very kind, so in my imagination he became the Dr Jamison in my SR related stories and series.4. I may be the only Starsky & Hutch fan who did not like the tag to Sweet Revenge. Sure it was fun and nice for the actors to close off 4 years of working together a little tipsy from the wine etc. but to me it didn’t fit the episode, at the very least as far as timing was concerned. Hutch speaks of not being able to let his injured partner eating the horrible hospital food for yet another week. And we KNOW Starsky must have been in hospital for a long time because not only is there absolutely no sign of injury, nor of medical equipment in the room, let alone attached to him, but he is also able to raise both arms behind his head. Sure, he says he took 4 pain killers, but really? And by the way: 4 painkillers and wine? Great combo! He just survived 3 bullets, then could have gotten himself killed mixing painkillers with booze! So, Starsky has no physical signs or limitations left after having been hit by 3 bullets from a machine gun, yet Hutch still has a bandage around his wrist where about one day after the assassination attempt on Starsky, he was knicked by a knife? Nope, too much suspension of disbelief for me. So, my literary liberty, as far as Sweet Revenge goes, is that the tag was probably a dream Hutch had after he had too much to drink. And the reason why he had too much to drink was probably because Starsky’s release date from the hospital was announced. So, in my universe, Hutch celebrated at the Pits, drank a lot, somehow got home to Venice Place safely, drank some more and the tag from Sweet Revenge was an alcohol induced dream, nothing more than that. And the tag as is was just a send off party between 4 actors at the end of the show’s run. So: NOT Starsky, Hutch, Dobey and Huggy, but Paul Michael, David, Bernie and Antonio.
Series: ROLLER COASTER [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1728343
Kudos: 7





	The Retaliation

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. Although not a part of my post Sweet Revenge series or Gunther Sessions series, I do use those series as point of reference for this story, by which I mean that any literary liberties (such as the explanation why Starsky is 32 in 1979 – see notes on The Journey; the length of the surgery on Starsky, the length of his coma – see The Post Gunther Sessions); the vow Hutch had made to his partner (in case of life threatening injuries – see Welcome Home) are the same as in the stories in those 2 series. I got the idea for this story from watching Sweet Revenge in detail recently, focusing on Dobey and Huggy.  
> 2\. The medical equipment to which Starsky was hooked up in Sweet Revenge in the first scene after the shooting was laughable. Many fans with a medical background have mentioned this through the decades. So, for all my SR related stories and series, I’d like all readers to imagine a far more realistic set-up of (life saving/sustaining) equipment and machines that Starsky is hooked up to, like a ventilator, more IV’s and monitors. Also, imagine a far more realistic appearance of the area of his body that was injured: tubes, drains, bandages, tapes, incissions/stitches all that was missing from SR’s hospital scenes.  
> 3\. I always thought the nameless doctor who treated Starsky on Sweet Revenge came across as very kind, so in my imagination he became the Dr Jamison in my SR related stories and series.  
> 4\. I may be the only Starsky & Hutch fan who did not like the tag to Sweet Revenge. Sure it was fun and nice for the actors to close off 4 years of working together a little tipsy from the wine etc. but to me it didn’t fit the episode, at the very least as far as timing was concerned. Hutch speaks of not being able to let his injured partner eating the horrible hospital food for yet another week. And we KNOW Starsky must have been in hospital for a long time because not only is there absolutely no sign of injury, nor of medical equipment in the room, let alone attached to him, but he is also able to raise both arms behind his head. Sure, he says he took 4 pain killers, but really? And by the way: 4 painkillers and wine? Great combo! He just survived 3 bullets, then could have gotten himself killed mixing painkillers with booze! So, Starsky has no physical signs or limitations left after having been hit by 3 bullets from a machine gun, yet Hutch still has a bandage around his wrist where about one day after the assassination attempt on Starsky, he was knicked by a knife? Nope, too much suspension of disbelief for me. So, my literary liberty, as far as Sweet Revenge goes, is that the tag was probably a dream Hutch had after he had too much to drink. And the reason why he had too much to drink was probably because Starsky’s release date from the hospital was announced. So, in my universe, Hutch celebrated at the Pits, drank a lot, somehow got home to Venice Place safely, drank some more and the tag from Sweet Revenge was an alcohol induced dream, nothing more than that. And the tag as is was just a send off party between 4 actors at the end of the show’s run. So: NOT Starsky, Hutch, Dobey and Huggy, but Paul Michael, David, Bernie and Antonio.

#  **ROLLER COASTER**

The most used disclaimer:  
The TV show "Starsky and Hutch", and the characters from it  
are the property of the persons who hold the copyrights  
and other legal rights to them.  
This story is a work of fiction, written for pleasure only  
and not for profit. It is not intended, in any way,  
to infringe on these preexisting copyrights.

## THE RETALIATION

Jacqueline©2020-05-30

**May 18, 1979 – 8:15 AM**

Dr Jamison and his medical staff were able to usher an ecstatic Hutch out of ICU 1 and – again – shut the blinds to the room so they could run tests on Starsky.

Both Captain Dobey and Huggy were moved, not only by the fact that Starsky had woken up from his coma, but also by the enormous effect this had on Hutch.

“He’s awake, Cap! He’s awake!” Hutch exclaimed, repeatedly, his face one big smile and his voice freed from the hoarseness, sounding clear, bright and young again.

Dobey patted Hutch on the back, while the latter was embracing Huggy.

“What happened? Did you do something special?” Huggy asked, as soon as Hutch had released him.

“I uh, no, nothing ….. I don’t know. I was ….. I was just …. you know, talking to him and….. nothing, you know? And then from one moment to the next, all of a sudden he looks at me ….” Hutch practically giggled,  
“Just like that ….. oh, man,” Hutch finished his rambling account, shaking his head, his hands touching and rubbing his cheeks as if he needed to feel in order to be able to believe.

Dobey and Huggy exchanged relieved looks, although their relief mostly regarded Starsky’s awakening and not Hutch’ mental state.

“Let’s go to our room – I’m sure the doc and his team will give us an update as soon as they’re done,” Dobey said, before leading the way to the make-shift post.

**May 18, 1979 – 9:53 AM**

Like they had done almost exactly 24 hours earlier, Dr Jamison and two of his colleagues stepped into the make-shift police post. Dobey, Hutch and Huggy immediately stopped what they were doing.

“I guess you’ve finished testing Detective Starsky, doc?” Dobey asked.

Huggy’s spirits had been up ever since Starsky had awakened from his coma, but this time the expression on Dr Jamison’s face did not have the same reassuring effect on him as it had yesterday.

“Indeed, so if you gentlemen would like to follow us?” Jamison said, before leading the way.

This time the group did not go to the ICU family room. Instead they took the elevator up to the eighth floor, where the private rooms of the doctors as well as the conference and lecture rooms were situated. The mere fact that they were going to a different location for this update, already gave Hutch, Dobey and Huggy a daunting feeling that they could read in each other’s eyes during the ride on the elevator.

They finally stepped into one of the conference rooms where Jamison gestured them to take their seats.

“Let me begin by introducing my colleagues to you,” Jamison said, first pointing at the man on his right.  
“This is Dr Frank Foretti, neurologist. And this,” he continued as he indicated the man on his left,  
“Is Dr Daniel Bernard, cardiologist. As you know, I’m in the lead of Detective Starsky’s case as head of the trauma and critical care unit. Now, this morning, Detective Starsky woke up from his coma, which lasted 56 hours. That’s good news in itself, of course, but add to that the fact that the shorter a coma lasts the better the chances for recuperation are for a patient as well as the importance of the depth of the coma. In all, Detective Starsky was lucky on all counts.”

Still, Dobey, Hutch and Huggy were not feeling elated by the good news, as the doctors did not exactly exude overall positivity.

Jamison let Dr Foretti continue their update.

“As you are all aware, Detective Starsky indeed woke up from his comatose state a little after 8 o’clock this morning. However, the fact that he’s opened his eyes does not mean his level of awareness is up to par. You see, recovery from coma is a gradual process. The opening of the eyes, such as is now the case with Detective Starsky, is usually how it begins. As Dr Jamison just indicated, the length of a coma is one of the most accurate predictors of the severity of long-term symptoms. Since Detective Starsky’s coma lasted only slightly more than two days, his chances for full recovery are favorable. We have submitted him to some basic tests, to check his level of awareness. We’ve tested how he responds to pain and to verbal commands or questions. At this moment, his scores are in the lower segment. His reactions or responses, all non-verbal I might add, were not altogether logical nor accurate. This indicates that his cognitive level is not functioning as it should ……. yet. But, as Dr Jamison just said, all the important factors are in Detective Starsky’s favor and he had only just woken up when we tested him, so there’s no man overboard.” Foretti ended his account.

“But he ….. he **smiled** at me ….. he **recognized** me,” Hutch softly offered.

Drs Jamison and Foretti exchanged looks, before the latter responded to Hutch.  
“That, I’m afraid, was probably more a reflex or involuntary action, Detective Hutchinson. As I’ve said, we have submitted Detective Starsky to some standard tests and we, too, witnessed his smile in response to requests, where such a response – to put it bluntly – made no sense. By this we don’t mean to worry you. We just want to convey to you that, unlike in the movies, a person does not wake up from a coma with the cliché questions of ‘who am I?’ or ‘where am I?”. It is a process, and right now, Detective Starsky is at the most basic stage of awakening.”

“Is there something we can do? I mean, you just mentioned the movies and I’ve seen some in which people talk to people who woke up from a coma, or play music or something like that,” Huggy said.

“Oh, I would certainly encourage speaking to or with the patient, reading to him and indeed playing music, but all in moderation, of course. Aside from having been in a coma, we shouldn’t forget that Detective Starsky suffered massive physical damage and has only just begun healing from extensive surgery, not to mention two cardiac arrests! Dr Bernard, maybe you can elaborate?,” Foretti handed the baton to the cardiologist.

“Yes,” Dr Bernard continued,  
“Although I have yet to find another case where a patient survived two cardiac arrests without any detectable damage to the heart, that doesn’t mean that the heart muscle of Detective Starsky, as well as all connected arteries etcetera, have not suffered any effects. They have literally been through multiple shocks. Not just from the cardiac arrests, but also from the initial impact of the bullets and later from the shocks by the defibrillator. So, although there **seems** to be no permanent damage to his heart, which is ….. which **I** have never before encountered in my years as a cardiologist, his heart and the immediately surrounding area are bruised. That’s a temporary condition, but still has its influence on his overall condition and healing process.”

“So, what will happen now? Is there anything we can do?” Dobey asked.

“Detective Starsky’s regaining consciousness is the first step on a long, possibly **very** long, hard, road to recovery,” Dr Jamison replied,  
“Yes, I can see the look on your faces. I **do** believe it is relatively safe to say now that we think the odds have changed in his favor. When he was brought in here three days ago, I can tell you now, he had less than a two percent chance of survival. Right now, we feel optimistic enough to estimate his chances around 35-40 percent, barring however any effects of possible infections. So, your special clearance to visit Detective Starsky will be continued. Of course he will continue undergoing examinations and tests, but you understand what we mean when we say that you are allowed to indeed visit with him and try to stimulate him, cognitively mostly, for his physical condition is still too compromised to be receiving any physical stimulation. I will let the nursing staff inform you on what you will be able to do to help Detective Starsky improve, alright? Are there any more questions, gentlemen?”

Hutch, Dobey and Huggy exchanged looks before collectively shaking their heads. They all were too overwhelmed to be able to construct any sensible input. So, the meeting was closed and the six men all went back to their individual activities.

**May 18, 1979 – 1:13 PM**

Hutch had left Memorial around 11 to go to the computer division at BCPD Metro after having spent some time at Starsky’s bedside. Based on the information that Huggy and he had deducted from their visit to Wells, Calley, Hodgson & Associates, a search in the computer system had delivered results for Hutch.

Huggy nor Dobey had spent time at Starsky’s bedside yet, after he had woken up from his coma. Now Huggy was again off to his bar to have his cook make something he thought Dobey would not be able to resist.

Dobey decided to finally go over and sit by Starsky’s bedside, for the first time today. He entered the room, just as a nurse walked out.

“Oh, you’re in luck Captain, he just woke up from a nap, again!” she cheerfully announced.

Dobey wasn’t too sure how to feel about her remark, after the tone of the briefing by the three doctors this morning. He paused in the doorway for a moment and looked at Starsky.

The curly haired detective’s upper body was almost completely covered in bandages with, as far as Dobey could detect, two drains sticking out. No longer on the ventilator, Starsky was now receiving supplementary oxygen from a nasal canula while both his arms had IV’s attached. From what was visible of his chest, Dobey could see that the resuscitation efforts had caused bruises to Starsky’s skin. It was not a pretty picture.

But Starsky’s eyes were open, Dobey could tell from the fluttering of the long, dark, eyelashes. He walked over to the bed and first stood on Starsky’s left side.

Although there was no medical equipment in the line of vision between both men, Starsky did not seem to notice his superior, not even after Dobey waved his hand at him.

He decided to walk over to the other side, but paused at the foot of the bed, where he stood straight in front of Starsky, directly in his line of vision. Again Dobey waved at his detective. Again there was no visual response.

A knot began to form in Dobey’s gut as he, now much slower, walked to the other side of the bed, next to the right side of Starsky’s body. The medical staff had re-arranged the machines so the chair for visitors now stood closer to the bedside.

Dobey sat down and at first quietly studied Starsky, who seemed to be sleeping with his eyes wide open. His eyes never completely shut when he blinked. His eyelids merely fluttered up and down.

Dobey felt uneasy at the sight of this normally strong, noisy and very physical young man, lying in a hospital bed while clearly not in control of his body.

He sighed, looked around the room first, before clearing his throat.  
“Starsky …… Dave …. Can you hear me?” Dobey asked.

No response. Not a move, nor a sound.

Dobey wondered if it was at all useful to speak to Starsky. Instead he carefully placed his right index finger in Starsky’s half opened, right, fist.  
“Can you grab my finger, Dave? Go on, son, grab my finger,” he said.

He thought he noticed a twitch in Starsky’s forearm and looked up at Starsky’s face, but his expression was unchanged. Still his eyes were wide open, still his lashes fluttered like a lost butterfly.

Now Dobey tapped the palm of Starsky’s right hand with his index finger and again asked,  
“Come on, Dave, grab my finger. You can do it, son.”

Just when Dobey thought his attempt was pointless, he felt Starsky’s hand closing around his finger, ever so weakly. It gave him goosebumps, but what brought a tear to his eye, was when he looked at Starsky’s face and noticed that he was smiling.

Dobey was deeply moved. The moment reminded him, like it would any parent, of the first moment a newborn child’s hand grabs hold of its parent’s finger. Yet, this was not a newborn, but a 32-year-old hardened policeman. And he was not Detective Starsky’s parent, but his superior.

With his left hand, Dobey got his handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped his nose and eyes.  
“You’ve got it, son. You can do it. You can come back, I know it. Keep trying, Dave.”

Dobey remained at his detective’s bedside, until Starsky fell asleep again, some 15 minutes later, then returned to the make-shift post after having washed the tears from his face in the men’s room.

**May 18, 1979 – 3:29 PM**

Hutch had spent the past hours sifting through the computer results and finding connections to files of cases he and Starsky had worked on over the years. He had called Dobey to ask permission if he could take some of the files to the hospital, so he could continue working on the case against Gunther but still be close to Starsky. Dobey had to nix Hutch’ request, since it went against protocol. He had, however, contacted the DA’s office and chief Ryan, to expedite the process of getting the paperwork in order that was needed for the, out of state and jurisdiction, arrests. So, Hutch had taken a break and had returned to the hospital to give his superior an update, after which he had gone to Starsky’s room again to sit at his partner’s bedside.

Meanwhile, Huggy had finally managed to have Dobey try one of the sandwiches his cook had prepared.  
“Well? Do you like it, Captain?” he asked.

“It’s nice, Huggy, thank you. This from your place?” Dobey asked once he’d swallowed the considerable bite he’d taken off the sandwich.

“Yeah ….. I brought some more stuff … all good,” Huggy answered.

“You’ve got a good cook, there, Huggy!” Dobey said, as he wiped his mouth. He could already feel his energy level rising, after his involuntary 3 day fast.

Huggy smiled and was happy to see Dobey’s spirit lift a bit. He’d noticed the large man’s sadness when he’d returned from Starsky’s room earlier. He had not asked Dobey about it, nor had he himself, gone into Starsky’s room yet, today.

Hutch quietly walked into the room and Huggy offered him a sandwich, too. Again, Hutch declined.

Huggy sighed, then asked,  
“How is he?”

“Oh, he fell asleep again,” Hutch responded wearily as he sat down.

Dobey looked at Hutch with compassion.  
“How does he look to you?”

Hutch took a long moment before answering in a monotone,  
“Well ….. his eyes are open …… but nobody’s home yet,” he said, then shrugged his shoulders,  
“I wonder if it’s the drugs against the pain or just the fact that he’s not fully out of coma yet, but….. his eyes are …… I get the feeling he’s not taking anything in, yet ….. You know?”

“Yeah,” Dobey nodded,  
“We have to be patient, Hutch,”. Then he changed the subject,  
“Have you found anything useful yet?”

Hutch sat up.  
“I’ve been making cross references. I’ve put R&I on it, too. So far, it looks like this giant octopus …… it just seems to spread in all directions …..”

“Remember, we can’t afford any mistakes, any slip-ups. All evidence, every connection, has to be watertight,” Dobey reminded Hutch.  
“They may not have succeeded in killing Starsky, but chances are they may have put a stop to his life as it was …… may have cost him his chance to lead a normal life ….. we don’t know yet, but, we gotta keep that in mind to be as motivated as possible to bring those responsible to justice!”

As he studied Hutch’ tired appearance, Dobey suggested,  
“I’ll take you off the roster, at….”

Hutch immediately interrupted with righteous indignation,  
“You’re gonna take me off the case after all, Captain? Did Chief Ryan ….”

“Hold your horses and listen to what I’m saying, Hutch! I wasn’t done yet!” Dobey cut in,  
“I’m not taking you off the case, I’m taking you off the night roster! I don’t want you to burn the candle on both ends! If you want to produce a watertight case, you have to be sharp! You need to have your head on straight! So, I want you to put in your daytime on the case, go through those files, make those connections ….. and not just to your own files. Chances are …. If this thing is as big as it looks it might be ….. some of the other detective teams may have connections in their cases, too. Let them help you. But use your nights to rest up….. re-energize. Starsky deserves that nobody drops the ball on this ….. You understand now?”

Hutch bowed his head, then looked up at Dobey and softly said,  
“I understand ……. Thanks, Captain …… sorry ……”

“That’s alright. I suggest you get back to work, but I want you to sign off at 7 PM at the latest. I will have it checked, so don’t try anything funny,” Dobey admonished.  
“Then I want you to go home, get a decent amount of night’s rest, and get back to work tomorrow morning. You got that? Stick to it!”

Hutch got up from his seat, ready to walk out of the room, then changed his mind and asked,  
“Huggy, you got some of those sandwiches left?”

Huggy got up,  
“Sure, man. I got permission to put them in the nurses’ fridge. Come on, let’s go get them!” Huggy said, while steering Hutch out of the room. As he did so, he looked over his shoulder and winked at Dobey, who nodded his head gratefully in return.

**May 18, 1979 – 6:42 PM**

After having eaten some of his own soulfood at the hospital cafeteria, Huggy finally felt brave enough to visit Starsky’s bedside, for the first time since he had awakened from his coma. When he entered the room, a nurse just finished up checking the monitors and IV’s. Starsky seemed to be asleep.

As the nurse passed Huggy in the doorway, he asked her,  
“Is he …. asleep?”

“Yes,” the nurse whispered with an encouraging smile,  
“He’s been taking naps all during the day ……. He’ll probably wake up any time now.”  
She studied Huggy’s face,  
“Didn’t you spend time with him today?”

Upon reading Huggy’s slightly embarrassed expression, the nurse told him,  
“You don’t need to feel guilty ….. having somebody so close be in such a serious condition can be intimidating. But he’s doing much better now than before. Just sit with him, and talk with him when he wakes up …. It’s okay,” she smiled at Huggy before leaving the room.

Slowly, Huggy walked over to the chair on Starsky’s right side and quietly sat down in it. The bruise on Starsky’s chest that was the result of the CPR 2 days ago, was darker now.

Like before, Huggy studied his friend again with the knowledge that this time, the reason for his closed eyes was a natural one.

After about 20 minutes, Starsky opened his eyes, blinked frequently and finally stared up at the ceiling. Huggy froze, and remained quiet for what seemed an eternity.

In reality, though, it took just a few minutes for him to move in his chair, causing Starsky’s eyes to wander around the room, as far as his immobility permitted.

Huggy guessed that Starsky, for whatever reason, was not, or not yet, able to move his head, so he got up from his chair and stepped up to the bed, enough to enter Starsky’s line of vision.

“Hey Starsky, my man! Welcome back, bro!” he softly said.

After a spell, Starsky’s eyes found Huggy’s face. Again he blinked frequently, but made no sound, nor did his face express what he might be feeling inside.

Huggy shivered involuntarily. It broke his heart to see his otherwise noisy friend be so stilled, both in sound as in motion. He reached out and patted Starsky’s right hand.  
“You’re gonna be okay, ya hear? Baby steps, Starsky, baby steps ……. But you’ll get there.”

Starsky’s eyes remained focused on Huggy’s and after another minute or two, he smiled before slipping into another nap.

Huggy sat back down in the chair again, wiped his nose and eyes and said a quiet prayer for his friend.

**May 18, 1979 – 10:29 PM**

Dobey had returned home around 7 PM, after leaving Huggy once more to sit with Starsky throughout the night. He did not have to ask the informant to do so; to Huggy it was a non-issue.

Dobey had eaten his first regular dinner since May 14. Rosie and Cal had asked how Starsky was doing, and Dobey had answered, truthfully, but with as few details as possible, that Starsky was slowly doing better.

After the kids had gone to bed, Edith had allowed her husband to decompress in the den, but now that they were in their bedroom, getting ready for the night, she inquired about her husband’s day.

“So, how do you really feel?”

“Huh?” Dobey asked, as he kicked off his slippers before turning into bed.

“I could see you didn’t tell the kids everything about Dave ….. about how he is doing….”

Dobey sighed and paused, as his mind went over the few short times he’d spent at Starsky’s bedside today.  
“Supposedly, he is awake …… But in reality ….. I think Hutch said it best, today. He said, his eyes are open, but nobody’s home yet ……. It’s like …. Like he’s in a different dimension or something ….. Like he can see things we can’t see …… You know?”

Edith got into her side of the bed.  
“Oh my. Did you ….. talk to him …. Did you get instructions from the doctors on how to ….. how to ….. act around him?”

“Yes, we can talk to him and ….. Well, mostly talk to him….. his physical state is …… It’s …. It’s just awful…..” Dobey said, morosely. He looked at his wife before continuing,  
“I uh …. The first time I sat with him this morning, after he’d woken up from the coma ….. I uh…. I put my finger in his hand ….. asked him to grab my finger …..squeeze it…… Oh Edith, he could barely comply ….. I mean I felt it, but ….. it really was weaker than an infant’s grip …… I swear to God……” Dobey’s eyes filled with tears and he shook his head, for he couldn’t continue.

Edith leaned into her husband, rested her head against his chest and caressed his hand. They sat that way, silently, for minutes, before turning off their bedside lights and going to sleep.

**May 19, 1979 – 9:11 AM**

After having a shower and getting dressed early in the morning, Huggy had gone to Starsky’s ICU room, but the door and blinds were closed. Overcome by a slight panic, fearing Starsky might have suffered a setback, he’d asked the nurse on duty what was going on. She had informed him that Starsky was undergoing routine tests, to check his cognitive skills and that those might take a while.

So, he’d gone down to the hospital’s cafeteria for some fresh coffee. When he’d returned, Starsky’s room was still not open to visitors, which now included Hutch who was, as so often, staring at the closed blinds, practically willing them to open.

Huggy noticed the blond detective was still wearing the same set of brown clothes as yesterday and the day before that.  
“Hey, Hutch ….. when did you get here?”

Hutch looked at Huggy, his tired features slightly swollen – perhaps from fatigue, perhaps from sadness.  
“Hey, Hug …… a while ago …..” He looked at the closed blinds again.  
“They’re testing his cognitive skills.”

“Yeah, I know,” Huggy said, concern written on his face for his blond friend, who was beginning to look more and more like a ghost.  
“Did you have some coffee, yet?”

“No, I’ll uh ….. I’ll grab some later.”

Huggy was trying to think of a way to inquire about Hutch’s state of dress without insulting him, but without luck. He was beginning to wonder if Hutch had spent the night at home at all.  
“I know Starsky had another good night…. Did you rest up well last night?” Huggy finally tried.

“Slept in my car …….” Hutch said casually.

“You…… what??!!”

It looked like Hutch only then realized he’d actually answered Huggy out loud. Startled he looked at his friend, with an embarrassed smile, before confessing,  
“Don’t tell the captain …… I….. I overstayed at Records, actually I uh…… fell asleep in the archive room. Officer Collins discovered me around 9 … Sent me home. I made him promise he wouldn’t report me, either……. I was too tired to drive home so I uh, slept in my car at the station. Snuck back in this morning to take a shower ……”.

“Sheesh, Hutch!” Huggy exclaimed, then grabbed the detective by the arm and pulled him into the storage room where he had spent the night.

“Listen up, Amigo. You can’t go on like this. Dobey’s gonna catch on! Pull yourself together, man! You’re not helping Starsky this way. What will happen to his case …. To him, if you fall apart???!!!!!”

Hutch looked long into Huggy’s eyes, before nodding his head,  
“I know ……. I know you’re right. I just …… I just can’t help myself ……If I stop now, I'll lose my pace .... my momentum....”

Huggy did not know where to go from there, so he decided to practice tough love.  
“Well, you'd better get a grip on yourself! You can’t slip, not until the case is closed! You can’t fall apart until those guys are behind bars ….. You owe it to Starsky! Don’t be the weak link …. Don’t be the reason why they won’t get sentenced!”

Hutch looked shocked at first, but then physically straightened himself,  
“Thanks, I needed that …. I …… I just don’t know, I mean ….. he’s been shot before, been near death before but, …….. this time ….. I don’t know ….”

“Hutch, I’m serious ….. if you want to stay on the case, you really need to pull yourself together….. Have you thought about ……” Huggy carefully phrased his concern for Hutch’ mental state.

“I don’t need a shrink, Hug …..” Hutch snapped, before – again – smiling apologetically at his friend,  
“But I …… I see what you mean. I know it …. I’m aware of it ….. I just can’t help myself. But ….. you’re right. And the captain is right ….. we need a watertight case. No way in hell are they going to get away with this ….. doesn’t make a difference that Starsky might come through this ……. The fact that they tried …… the fact that they may have …… ruined his life …… that counts as murder to me, too….” Hutch inhaled deeply. He wanted to say more, but an orderly came into the storage room, so he and Huggy stepped out into the hallway again.

Right at that moment the doctors stepped out of Starsky’s room and coincidentally, Dobey arrived as well.

Dr Jamison looked at the three men and only had a brief statement for them,  
“Gentlemen, I’m sorry I don’t have much time for you today. We’ve just attempted to perform a cognitive test on Detective Starsky, but at this moment, his skills are not up to par, yet. His other results, blood results, heart rate, his uh, his vitals are all still improving, which is a good sign. Patience is the key word, here. Now, if you will excuse us….”.

“Doc, one thing,” Dobey asked,  
“His lack of cognitive skills ….. is this something to worry about?”

Dr Jamison looked at Dr Foretti, who answered,  
“No, Captain, it’s still early days …… Every patient has a different tempo in which they wake up from a coma ….. there’s no need for concern.”

With that remark, the doctors went to their next appointment, leaving Dobey, Huggy and Hutch staring at Starsky through the window to his ICU room.

**May 19, 1979 – 12:07 PM**

With Hutch back at the station to try and connect the dots to build a case against the Gunther conglomerate, Captain Dobey and Huggy were left at Memorial. They had alternated their time at Starsky’s bedside and had been reading the sections of the newspaper they thought Starsky would be interested in, to the injured detective.

Now, Huggy was back at his bar again, since his business was not running itself. He would still return to the hospital, but now that Starsky seemed more stable, Huggy knew he had to make sure his livelihood would remain that way, too.

“Yaime, can you make some extra rib sandwiches and set them aside with some extra spare ribs, for tonight?” Huggy asked his cook.

“Any news?” Anita asked, as she was checking the inventory behind the bar.

“Hey, Anita,” Huggy greeted his no nonsense bartender. He knew she had a soft spot for both detectives, but the one time she thought Starsky had been possibly fatally injured, had revealed her preference. When he had told her that this time, Starsky was truly hospitalized in grave condition, Anita had immediately offered to work a full roster, even though she had penciled in a few days off.

“He’s doing ….. as well as can be expected, I guess,” Huggy told her.

“Is he more ….. responsive already?,” Anita asked tentatively.

Huggy paused his actions for a moment, then shook his head,  
“Not that I can tell,” he sighed,  
“But the docs don’t seem too worried, so I guess it takes time.”

Anita looked at her inventory list without seeing it.  
“But he **is** going to make it…….. right?” she asked.

Huggy took another long moment before he answered,  
“The doctors told us he had a 2 percent chance of making it ….. and he’s now up to about 40 percent …… “

Anita put her hand on her heart as her eyes welled up.

Huggy instinctively pulled her into a hug.  
“I got a feeling he’s gonna surprise us all …… I know my man …… he’s gonna make it ….. he’s got to.”

**May 19, 1979 – 12:22 PM**

Captain Dobey had just finished reading the sports page to Starsky, and was now going through the rest of the newspaper looking for possible items that might be interesting to read to the detective.

“Let’s see ….. what else have we got here …… no ….. Council will grant …… nope, not interesting ….. What’s this? …….. Nah …… Specials ….. Let’s see ….. Oh, T-bone steaks $ 1.79 a pound ….. Hmmm, don’t know if that’s a good price or not …. You sure like your meats, too, don’t you, Dave? Let’s see, what else we got ….. Ground beef ……. Italian sausages …. Pork chops ….. hmmm, gotta tell Edith about that….” As he turned the page of the newspaper, Dobey looked up, only to find that Starsky had turned his head and was now looking directly at him.  
  
The discovery startled Dobey. When he’d found his voice again, he asked,  
“Dave ….. Good to see you, son….. How are you …. How do you feel?”

Starsky just continued looking at his superior, who was unsure if his detective’s awareness had improved yet.  
“Starsky, uhm ……,” Dobey searched for a way to check Starsky’s cognitive skills of the moment. Not quick to improvise, he again offered his index finger to the young man,  
“Can you grab my finger, Dave …… Here, look ….. feel my finger ….. can you grab my finger?”

It took a while, but indeed, after having been encouraged a few more times by Dobey, Starsky, again, weakly grabbed his Captain’s finger, just when a nurse walked in to check the monitors.

“Nurse,” Dobey addressed the young woman,  
“Look …..” and he indicated Starsky’s hand on the bed, holding on to his finger,  
“I asked him to grab my finger and he responded!” Dobey smiled, like a proud father.

The nurse had noticed something more significant, though,  
“Did you ask him to turn his head, too, sir?” she asked.

“Uhm, no ….. no, I didn’t …. I uh, was reading the paper to him and when I looked up, he was like this …., why?”

“So, you do not know when he turned his head?” the nurse asked.

“No …… was I supposed to…… “ Dobey replied in an apologetic tone.

“No, that’s quite alright sir, I will let the treating team know he responded to your request.” She made some notes on Starsky’s status and left the room again.

Dobey looked back at Starsky, whose grip on his finger had weakened. He could tell Starsky was about to fall asleep again, so once the detective’s eyes closed, he got up from his chair and returned to the make-shift post at the end of the hallway.

**May 19, 1979 – 1:40 PM**

Hutch had returned from Metro and walked into the make-shift post where Dobey was conferring with Sergeant Horowitz who was investigating the murder of the resident at Memorial. As soon as Dobey noticed Hutch, he turned to him and asked,  
“And? Anything yet?”

Hutch looked at both Dobey and Horowitz, cleared his throat and started his update,  
“I’ve uh …… I told you I’d cross referenced some names in several of uh …. Starsky’s …. Starsky’s …… cases we’ve worked on over the past years …… And uhm, I’ve asked the other teams if they could recognize some patterns, or some things that they recognized from cases they’d handled. We had the first preliminary results put into a reference check at R&I. The printers have been running since I left and Samson will drop off the print outs as soon as they’re done.”

“Good. Now Dan,” Dobey addressed sergeant Horowitz,  
“once Hutch is done with those, cross check them with the finds in your case; there’s gotta be a connection there, too.”

Horowitz nodded his head and left the room.

Dobey studied Hutch. He, like Huggy before him, noticed the blond detective had been wearing the same clothes for three days now. Yet, he decided against making a remark about that, not wanting to send Hutch over the edge. Instead he decided to share his good news about Starsky.  
  
“You know, uh……. Starsky reached a milestone when you were at Metro,” Dobey said.

Hutch’s facial expression was filled with anticipation,  
“Really? He did? What happened?”

“He uh, turned his head towards me, when I was reading the paper to him,” Dobey said, and was moved to see how a smile lit up Hutch’s troubled features.

“Really?” Hutch exclaimed, positively beaming with happiness.

“Yeah, plus he’d grabbed on to my finger twice already ….. on command,” Dobey added, now joining Hutch with a relieved smile,  
“I guess that means his cognitive skills are improving.”

“That’s great! I’m going to his room,” Hutch said, as Dobey picked up an internal phone line.

“Hutch, wait!,” Dobey called out to Hutch who’d just stepped into the hallway.  
“Samson’s on his way up with your print outs!”

Hutch hesitated for a moment, then went in the opposite direction of Starsky’s room, to meet with officer Samson.

**May 19, 1979 – 3:06 PM**

“Captain! Will you **please** get your officer out of Detective Starsky’s room!”

The nurse’s agitated voice, startled Dobey. She had started her shift, waking in Starsky’s room, just when he’d stepped out, about an hour earlier.

Although hooked up to a battery of life supporting equipment, Starsky was never alone in his ICU room. At all times, night or day, a nurse would be sitting in the room with him. They only left the room whenever Hutch, Dobey or Huggy were sitting at Starsky’s bedside. At those times, they would monitor Starsky from the post directly across from his room, where all the read-outs of the life support system were copied on another set of monitors.

“What officer?” Dobey asked her.

“The blond one, with the moustache …… I think he’s Detective Starsky’s partner?”

“Detective Hutchinson? Why can’t he visit with his partner? Did Starsky have a setback?” Dobey asked, immediately alarmed.

“No, not yet,” the nurse said, obviously irritated, while she practically pulled Dobey out of his chair by his arm,  
“But if he keeps carrying on like this, he may just cause a setback. A patient who’s recovering from a cardiac arrest needs rest! Please, make him leave Detective Starsky’s room!”

Dobey let himself be directed to Starsky’s ICU room. When he entered, it only took him half a second to understand the problem. As he sat down beside Hutch on the vacant bed next to Starsky’s he tried to get the excitedly rambling detective’s attention.

“Hutch,” Dobey said.

But Hutch kept on reading findings on the print outs regarding the Gunther conglomerate to Starsky at an adrenalized speed and volume.

“Hutch!,” Dobey repeated, a little louder now.

He finally managed to get Hutch’s attention.  
“What?” Hutch asked.

Dobey only nodded his head in Starsky’s direction.

The sight of a soundly sleeping Starsky stopped Hutch dead in his tracks.

“Listen, your flight to ….” Dobey began, but Hutch hushed him, and gestured they should leave the room, so that Starsky could rest.

Near the doorway, Dobey tried again,  
“Your flight to San Francisco leaves in….”

Again Hutch hushed his captain.

Then, third time is a charm, Dobey tried yet again,  
“Your flight to San Francisco leaves in 30 minutes! Get started!”

Hutch was all smiles and adrenaline, yet he managed to keep his voice to a whisper when he asked Dobey,  
“Look, uhm, when he wakes up ……..,” Hutch handed the elaborate print outs to Dobey,  
“you’ll read him the rest of this?”

Dobey just wanted to appease the stressed out nurse and to have Hutch catch his flight in time, so he took the print outs from Hutch and promised to do what Hutch had asked him to do.

After one last look at his sleeping partner, a beaming Hutch then practically skipped out into the hallway, ran to the elevators and went on his way to arrest the big, mighty, James Marshall Gunther for the attempted murder of Detective David Michael Starsky.

Meanwhile, Dobey was left in Starsky’s room with an indignant nurse, who gave him an unforgiving look that didn’t improve when he tried to gather the long computer print outs with as little noise as possible. Just then, Huggy stepped into the room, which only annoyed the nurse even more.  
  
“Oh, Huggy, good …… give me a hand with this, will you …. I need this in our room,” Dobey grunted.

Huggy stepped further into the room, took a quick glance at the sleeping Starsky, and began picking up the part of the print outs that had fallen on the floor. As he and Dobey clumsily left Starsky’s room, both carrying part of the paper load, he asked the captain,  
“Where’s Hutch off to, Captain?”

“He’s on his way to the airport,” Dobey panted, as they neared the make-shift post.  
“He’s gonna fly to San Francisco where the local PD is going to assist him as he brings in the big fish,” Dobey finished, depositing the pile of paper on an empty chair.

“What? Who?” Huggy asked.

“Your handiwork paid off……. The phone numbers you retrieved were the missing link. They gave Hutch a reference point and analysis by the computer tied a lot of information together …….. in a neat legal package.” Dobey sat down behind the transmitter.

“So?” Huggy was still in the dark.

“So, Hutch put in extra hours ….. probably slept at the station …… Don’t look so caught …. Or do you think I didn’t notice he hadn’t changed his clothes the past few days? I was in a bind …… Would I let him run himself to the ground while connecting the dots ….. or would I stop him, take him off the case, run the risk of having to watch him self destruct from frustration and anger?” Dobey paused.  
“I almost did what my superior wanted me to do, but I know Hutch ….. I could see the gears turning in his head ….. so, I took a risk….. and Hutch didn’t let me down ….. He didn’t let Starsky down….. He connected all the dots, including the last and most important one. The one to the man himself,” Dobey said, with satisfaction,  
“Gunther.”

**Author's Note:**

> The title of this series was inspired by a song by Dutch singer Danny Vera (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWe4e0_UmIc), see the lyrics below:
> 
> ROLLER COASTER  
> Danny Vera
> 
> Here we go  
> On this roller coaster life we know  
> With those crazy highs and real deep lows  
> I really don't know why  
> And I will go  
> To the farthest place on earth I know  
> I can travel all the road, you see  
> 'Cause I know you're there with me
> 
> You don't have to slow me down  
> 'Cause I will always be around  
> I will find my way back home  
> Where magnolia grows, where magnolia grows
> 
> But I guess you know  
> Why I do what I do and where I go  
> I try to fill that empty space inside  
> But I can't do that without you  
> You're even with me in my dreams  
> I see a sail, the seven seas  
> I will try to find my way  
> You're always there tomorrow, you're always there tomorrow
> 
> Here we go  
> On this roller coaster life we know  
> With those crazy highs and real deep lows  
> I really don't know why  
> And I will go  
> To the farthest place on earth I know  
> I can travel all the road, you see  
> 'Cause I know you're there with me  
> You don't have to slow me down  
> 'Cause I will always be around  
> I will find my way back home  
> Where magnolia grows, where magnolia grows
> 
> Here we go  
> On this roller coaster life we know  
> With those crazy highs and real deep lows  
> I really don't know why  
> And I will go  
> To the farthest place on earth I know  
> I can travel all the road, you see  
> 'Cause I know you're there with me
> 
> Here we go  
> On this roller coaster life we know  
> I can travel all the road, you see  
> 'Cause I know you're there with me  
> 'Cause I know, oh I know  
> You're there with me
> 
> Songwriters: Danny Polfliet / John J H Verhoeven


End file.
